Summer Camp '15!
Oh boy, has this been quite the job! 8 hours everyday, working with kids K-6, but mainly with K-3. Twice a week we take my half of camp on a field trip, following with a trip to the swimming pool. The other days, we are at the "camp site" (which actually a jr high) and we rotate them through different classes and activities. I honestly don't think I've been more busy during the summer! It's a total blast hanging out with these kids, and I get to go do fun stuff as part of the job! It's been a long summer for sure, and I am very ready for camp to be over but I will totally do it again next year. These kids make me laugh and smile everyday, and though we've had our bad days, it's been worth it. Can't believe it went by so quickly, too! 2 very short weeks left and then it's back to normal VIK.
4th of July Concert
All the while I've been working full time, since the middle of May, my sister, mother and I had been learning 90 minutes worth of music to perform at a concert out in Sun City West. On a whim, they contacted my mother to see if our group Resonance Vocal Ensemble would be able to perform for them on the 4th July. Unfortunately, we do not rehearse or perform during the summer months but my mom quickly asked my sister and I if we would be down to do a solo show! Impulsively we said yes! Then reality set in. We had to be performance ready for a 90 minute show for a 800 sold out seat audience in 6 weeks!! So. Much. Rehearsing. Our concert consisted of mainly Andrews Sisters classics, solos dabbled in, and a patriotic set to finish. We had to learn everything by ear (which is my absolute LEAST favorite way of learning. Ugh. Words cannot describe). Everything is coming together about 2 weeks before the performance, and I catch a nasty head cold. 5 days before the show. Basically every singer's nightmare, considering you get all that nasty phlegm all up in your vocal folds' business. Especially for me, I basically lose it after I start to recover. Fortunately I could get through most of the songs without too much problem (I just sounded a tad hoarse) but there was one solo song that was in the lowest part of my belt, and literally no sound would come out when doing our sound check. I was freaking out just a little, but fortunately we found a solution by making a joke out of it and having my mom sing it with me. It was a great show overall, and the audience loved it and us.
We're pretty cute.
Also our venue was legit. Sold out show!
Voice Lessons
On top of all of THAT , I have been taking voice lessons with Kaarin between semesters. I need to be basically ready for my ASU audition by the time the semester starts, and there is NO way I was preparing an aria by myself. haha and I also really love voice lessons, so... :D It's been going very well. I have 4 songs I am currently studying and I love all of them...some more than others, naturally. ;) I have this one Strauss piece that is literally to die for and it's definitely my favorite one. Take a listen here if you want to listen to this magnificent piece of music. [Note: there is a long piano intro, so you gotta hang tight for like a minute, but the intro is beautiful.] This one is a close tie with "Willow Song" from Ballad of Baby Doe, which is just as drool worthy. Can I please just be Beverly Sills for a day?
Other than that, nothing else to report. I should get to cleaning my room. Maybe. ;)
